The Enemy Within
by Tom
Summary: Chapter 8 is now up... it's my longest chapter to date, and I hope one of my best. Please review. -Tom
1. Command.com

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **Before we get started, I'd like to explain a few things. This is my first ReBoot fic. It may be a bit confusing at times, but bear with me- the fic explains itself as it goes on. I may not be 100% accurate with all the technical info- once again, bear with me. This story is set sometime after the Daemon arc, just so y'all don't get confused. And no, I don't own ReBoot. (Big surprise there, huh?) 

            Oh, and please review! Claire, Dan- I'd especially appreciate an honest opinion from two of the best. If anyone's actually bothered to read this far, I'm done boring you- on with the fic!

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**PROLOGUE:**

COMMAND.COM 

High atop the Principle Office, a lone figure ascended the final stairway and stood breathless at the pinnacle of the silver dome. The day had dawned gray and cheerless, and ice-cold winds buffeted Dot as she clutched at the doorway behind her for support. Shivering, regaining her balance, the sprite gazed out across the rest of the city.

            Dot Matrix... Command.com of what was left of Mainframe. Though the rain cascading off the mushroom-like spread of the Principle Office shields distorted her vision of the desolate expanse, it couldn't block out the memories...

            Even though she knew she shouldn't, even though she knew it was tearing her apart, Dot couldn't stop thinking about it. She couldn't get the pictures out of her head... the fall of G-Prime, the desperate defense against the invader, and the final stand before the Principle Office. They'd lost so many lives in that last, desperate defense... lives that had been necessary to give Phong and Mouse the time they needed to get the shields back online... lives that Dot, as Command.com, had so coldly ordered sacrificed in full knowledge of what would happen to those few last defenders. 

And the very last of those lost had been her own brother, Enzo. She could still picture that youthful face, always ready with a smile or laugh that could brighten up a room- almost like a son to her... and then that same face, rigid with horror and mouth open in a silent scream as the Principle Office shields went up. Mouse had arrived just in time to yank Dot back from certain death- but Enzo, little Enzo was trapped on the outside. Dot shuddered. She could still remember what that _thing_ had done to Enzo, with her less than ten feet away and powerless to intervene...

            The images played themselves over and over in her head, tormenting her with the agony of each loss... tormenting her for her failures. And Dot _had_ failed, she knew that. Failed at every turn to prevent the holocaust from happening. Failed to stop Matrix from reactivating the ancient system below G-Prime... failed in her attempt to halt the invader in its inexorable progress toward the Principle Office... and failed Enzo. Her own brother, the only family she'd ever had...

            _Failure_..._ Failure_..._ Failure_... the words played themselves over and over in Dot's mind. And she deserved every instant of agony those words, those memories brought. Because of her, thousands of Mainframe's citizens led an appalling existence devoid of warmth, light, or anything except the seemingly irrepressible will to survive. Those that were still alive in the first place...

            Because of her, Mainframe's few surviving defenders were huddled inside the Principle Office, the heavy shields the only thing between them and deletion. And it was because of her that little Enzo had been killed, murdered like so many others...

            _They think I'm some kind of emotionless, calculating machine_._ They think I can pull off miracle after miracle, and that I don't see all the lives that are lost when even one single aspect of a plan goes wrong_... _or even when it all goes right_._ I wonder what they'd think if they knew the agony I feel with every new plan, every order I issue, knowing that someone else is going to die today because of me_... _I wonder what they'd think then_.

            _Well this time, I'm all out of tricks_. _This time, there won't be any last-minute miracles to save us if that shield ever comes down_... _I'm breaking_._ Tearing apart on the inside_. _I wonder if the others would rest as easily at night if they knew that their only defense was a single, pathetic shield_..._ If they knew that their vaunted Command_._com was nothing more than a scared, used up old woman_...

            Dot's shoulders began to shake. She cried helplessly, tears of frustration and rage at all that had been done to the city... of the evil she was powerless against, and the nightmare she had failed to stop. _This is just too much to handle- too much for anyone to handle! There's only so much I can do_...

            The door slid softly open behind her, and a familiar, comforting arm went around her shoulders. _Bob_... _Even after all I've done to him, he's still there for me_... She cried harder at the shame of it all, but made an effort appear her usual calm, logical self as Bob gently guided her back down the stairwell to the War Room. After all, the others still depended on her, still looked to her as a source of inspiration even in these times.

            _I've got to go on, _Dot thought to herself as she turned her back on the apocalypse Mainframe had become. _Somehow, I've got to keep going_... _Maybe somehow, I can find a way to atone for everything I've done_... _For all the times I've failed_. _Like Enzo said, on that day so long ago_..._ I've got to go on_. _Because there is no one else_.


	2. Part I: The Cube

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **First of all, I'd like to say thanks for the reviews. That's something I've always liked about the ReBoot section. Some of the other sections I used to write for, unless you put "yaoi", "lemon", "incest" or something similar in the summary you really didn't get reviews… except the humor fics, those do well in almost any category. I haven't seen anything like that here really, except for some of Stupendo's stuff- and who listens to him? Anyway, writing for ReBoot, I can actually write a fic that has action as its focal point and get people to read it- that's one of the main reasons I decided to write something for this category in the first place. Another note, Matrix especially may be a bit OOC in this fic- I'm trying to keep it as close as possible to the show, but it's hard to write someone as being a grim aggressor man ALL the time! Lol, AIM me anytime if you want- my screen name's on my profile. And as always, please review!!! 

Part I THE CUBE 

(Thought I'd name a chapter after one of my personal favs… hope you don't mind Claire!)

**Time: Before the storm (past)**

The sun rose slowly over the horizon of Mainframe, its warm rays signifying new beginnings, and the start of a new era after Daemon's defeat. Matrix yawned and stretched luxuriously as the morning light streamed through the window into the small apartment. The renegade ran a hand sleepily through his hair as he climbed out of bed and began to dress. Lately, he'd been feeling more rested, more relaxed- now that Daemon was finally gone, maybe he really _could_ go back to leading what most sprites called a "normal" life...

            He smiled softly, reaching over to trace the soft curves of AndrAIa's face. The beautiful sprite lying next to him was evidence enough of the benefits of such a life. She stirred gently, her eyes blinking sleepily open to take in the new day. "Hey, Lover," she said, reaching up to pull Matrix into a gentle embrace. After a long moment, the renegade pulled back, allowing her to slide her long, luxurious legs onto the floor. Standing slowly, she regarded him with a grin. "You're cheerful this morning," she said, poking him lightly in the stomach. "What's new?" 

            "It's just... a beautiful day outside." Matrix shrugged. "I dunno... it's just that now that Daemon's gone things are finally peaceful for the first time in hours. It's like I can finally relax for once- not have to keep looking over my shoulder for some new threat every nano. It feels like... a new beginning. Almost like I was Young Enzo again. Nowhere important to be, nothing to do... you know what I mean?"

            "Sometimes I think you _are_ going soft on me, Lover," AndrAIa giggled, slipping an arm around his shoulders and walking with him to the balcony. As they opened the twin French doors, they had a panoramic view of the rest of Mainframe.  Brilliant morning sunlight streamed through the doorway, and the resulting effect was breathtaking. AndrAIa couldn't recall a better startup since the last reboot... and hadn't _that_ been a sight to behold. She put her arm slowly around Matrix's waist, leaning into him. Below, binomes scurried about on their daily morning routines, the bustle of a city shaking off its slumber and preparing for the new second filling the air. She sighed, enjoying the feel of him next to her as she stared out across the city. It felt like she could stay like this forever...

            "MATRIX!" a voice shouted from behind them. Cat-quick, Matrix whirled, dropping into a crouch with Gun held at the ready. A Vid-Window stood open behind them, Phong in its center. "Perhaps I had better turn down the volume a bit," he said hastily, noting the renegade's stance. AndrAIa gave Matrix a look. "What?" he said, shrugging. "Old habits die hard, I guess..."

            Phong leaned back again, this time speaking more quietly. "As I was saying, we have a game cube dropping just south of the Principle Office. If you could...?"

            "We'd be glad to, Phong," AndrAIa said. "See ya in a nano!" The Vid-Window snapped off. "Well, there goes our perfect morning," Matrix growled. "Stay frosty, Sparky!" the beautiful sprite called as she soared off into the sunrise on her zip board. Above, Matrix could hear the first warnings begin as the sky turned slowly to black. "_Warning, Incoming Game._ _Warning, Incoming Game. Warning, Incoming Game..._"

            With a sigh, he jumped on his zip board, heading after the other defenders and just making it as the giant purple cube dropped into place...

            Matrix looked around. It seemed like everyone had made it into the game- except Bob, who was probably still at the Principle Office recovering from all the energy he'd expended in that last battle with Daemon. "Well, hello there, Sugah," Mouse said, a trademark mischievous grin lighting her face. "Glad you could make it." Matrix wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Where are we? This place smells like a sewer!" 

            "Honey, we _are_ in a sewer. I remember this one from my old Academy days- it's called _Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles_." Matrix laughed out loud. "What kind of a game _is_ this?" he asked. "If ya think that's funny, just wait'll you reboot," Mouse said, a twinkle in her eye. The renegade shrugged. "Reboot!" the group shouted as one.

            When the light faded, a bizarre group of figures emerged. AndrAIa had transformed into some kind of hideously mutated rhinoceros, with a bandolier of ammo slung across her shoulders. Ray had emerged as an equally hideously mutated baboon. "What is this, some kind of a joke?" Matrix asked. He had 'booted into a giant figure robed in purple, with metallic spikes protruding from every visible surface. "You're lucky, Sugah," Mouse said. Her character was a grotesque-looking giant brain in a robotic suit. Matrix looked around doubtfully. A swarm of purple-suited ninjas had also appeared around them. "Foot soldiers- our allies," Mouse explained. "The User also has four Game Sprites to help him along."

            "Whatever," Matrix said. "Let's get going before this smell drives me to deletion." The renegade pushed open a manhole cover- and ducked quickly as a sharpened dagger drilled itself into the wall just above his head. "Seems our "friends" are already waiting up ahead. After you?" He gestured to AndrAIa, whose bulky rhinoceros character had a lethal-looking machine gun. With a grunt, the rhino elbowed Matrix out of the way and peppered the area outside with a deadly hail of bullets. "Hey man!" "What's your problem?" "Cowabunga!" said the five mutated Turtles as they each died painful deaths. AndrAIa looked back at the others, her face breaking into what Matrix thought could almost be a grin. "Coast is clear, Sparky!" she said as she climbed through the manhole.

            Meanwhile, back at the Principle Office, Phong was running Bob through a last round of tests. "In spite of the enormous amount of energy you've expended, you're basically all right," Phong was saying as Dot walked through the door. Bob sat up slowly, his body still vaguely transparent. Dot leaned down and hugged him impulsively. "I'm just glad you're OK," she said, a tear glistening at the corner of her eye. "After what Daemon made you do..." "I just wish I could've made it in time for that game," Bob mused as he leaned back on the makeshift bed. "I actually kinda miss the games..." "You won't be going into ANY games for awhile, Bob," Dot said. "Not in your condition." She kissed Bob gently on the lips, muffling any protest he might have made. Even if he wasn't going into any games for awhile, Bob thought, it seemed Dot would make his stay in the Principle Office _very_ worthwhile...

            Back in the game, Matrix and his friends struggled desperately against the advancing Turtles. "How many lives does this guy _have_?" Matrix gasped as he pulled out a bazooka, blasting a nearby skyscraper so it landed on the User and his allies. The last few remaining Foot Soldiers were destroyed in the blast as well- Matrix had realized the stupidity of sending them into battle at least five lives ago, when he had commanded them to attack the User. Those _basic_ Sprites had walked into an ambush a null could see from a mile away and practically been wiped out. And _they_ didn't regenerate like the User's allies did. "Cowabunga!" a voice called as the Turtles came back to life. 

"He's got the game set on Easy mode!" Mouse grunted, hefting a drum full of explosives and throwing it at the Turtles as they reappeared. "Counting the two extra lives he got on the last level, he's got thirty-two total!" "Great!" Matrix shouted as he impaled one of them on a spike. "That's twelve down so far- twenty to go!" 

            A burst of gunfire from Ray and AndrAIa eliminated the User's team again. "Make that nineteen!" Ray said cheerfully. "All out of ammo here!" "We've got to stop them soon!" Mouse cried as her giant robot squashed the Turtles with a heavy construction vehicle. "On Easy mode they've only got to get past this level to win!" "This is _insane_!" Matrix gasped as he knocked a Turtle flying with a single blow. "Cowabunga dudes!" it shouted as it immediately reappeared.

            Slowly but surely, even as they made the User lose life after life, the Turtles were gaining ground. _We'll lose if we keep going at this rate_, Matrix thought darkly. "Guys!" Mouse shouted as she ducked into a nearby storefront, "I've got an idea- cover me!" "Whatever you say," Ray said, pulling out a handful of grenades and lobbing them at the User. "Only 16 more to go!"

            "Radical!" the Turtles shouted as all five of them immediately regenerated.

Mouse walked out of the store she'd ducked into dressed in a strange uniform that didn't quite fit. The label on the cap read _Mike's Pizzeria- a once in a lifetime experience! _Matrix hoped it would be- for the User, at least. "Pizza's served, boys!" Mouse yelled, tossing the boxes she was carrying at the Turtles. "Come an' get it!"

 "Pizza time! Gnarly!" four of the Turtles yelled as they immediately began eating the tasty food. The User ignored the pizza- but now they'd be able to concentrate on him instead of worrying about the other four. And one Turtle was _much_ easier to handle than five. Matrix grinned, his bionic eye turning red as it locked onto the User. "Time to make _you_ into Turtle soup," he said, his metallic claws extending.

Meanwhile, Steve, the User, muttered a stream of curses at the screen. Some _easy_ mode that had turned out to be! _Well, I'll show them_, he thought in a drunken haze as he reached for another beer. Minimizing the first game, in which his character, abandoned by the other four Turtles, was getting pounded on by the enemies, he opened up a game he'd just finished downloading from Napster. "This game's cooler anyway," he said as the title screen came up. "And I have cheat codes for this one!"

Back at the Principle Office, Bob sat up, yawning. _How long have I been alseep?_ he wondered, as he stared up at the diagnostic screens inside the War Room. Abruptly, a klaxon began to wail in the distance. _Warning, Incoming Game. Warning, Incoming Game._ Bob leapt to his feet in alarm. "That's impossible!" he shouted, staring at the other screens for reassurance. "Another game cube is still in progress!" "This does not look good, my son," Phong said as he wheeled up alongside Bob. "The game is descending over G-Prime- almost directly above the former location of the Tor." 

"Well, someone's gotta defend it," said Bob, pulling out his zip board. "Oh, no you don't," Dot said, running up. "Not in your condition. Besides, there aren't even any Sprites or Binomes left in that part of the city- only Nulls, and they avoid the game cubes anyway!" "I've got to go, Dot!" Bob said, hovering off the ground. "Even if no one lives there, losing an entire sector is definitely _not_ good- and there's no one else to defend it!" He was off before Dot could say another word about it.

Dot turned angrily to Phong, who wheeled back a few paces hesitantly. "I want full med teams standing by as soon as the cube leaves!" she shouted. "I don't want him hurt again- not like last time! The stupid-" Turning on her heel, she stalked wrathfully from the room.

The wall of purple descended. "Glitch- game stats," Bob said automatically. At times, he forgot he and Glitch were even bonded- but then, he always had been a bit absent-minded. "Let's see... he said to himself. "It's a regular multi-level fight game... and the User gets only one life. That's good, at least- sounds easy enough." Deep inside, he could feel a presence working its way closer and closer...

_Wow, he's already here?_ Bob thought. Must be good... Bob stepped out of the alley, the brilliant light from the 'boot fading to leave him looking like some kind of street bum. _Figures,_ he thought. _At least I get these switch-blades to use._ Hand-to-hand combat was one thing he was truly good at- it was a course they'd really emphasized back in his Academy days.

A brilliant shining silhouette approached- the User. _What kind of creature IS he?_ Bob wondered. Four enormous, scaly arms, a head with a mouthful of teeth each as long as one of Bob's hands, and vengeful red eyes... eyes that turned eagerly to regard Bob in anticipation of its next meal. Swallowing hard, Bob pulled out one of his switchblades and threw it with all his might at one of those enormous, blood-red eyes. It did absolutely no damage.

Steve laughed with delight as he finished off the twelve-pack, watching the puny street bum try to damage his character. _That invulnerability cheat really works_! he thought, searching around for the printout. The little guy was fast, he had to admit that- even with invulnerability on, he couldn't seem to manage to get rid of him. _Here we go_! he thought. Two more cheat codes- one to get rid of opponents for you, the other a level skipper. _I'll use them both_! he thought. _With _both_ of them at the same time, there's no way that bum's gonna come back_! Locating a fresh can of beer, the User stabbed at the keys with a new sense of purpose.

Bob twisted and dodged frantically. _Now I know why this guy only gets one life_! he thought, barely avoiding the swipe of one monstrous claw. _He must have incredible health_! Suddenly the monster stood perfectly still, its red eyes flashing malevolently. _Probably powering up some special attack... well, now's as good a time as any_! Raising a switchblade, Bob dropped into a crouch, preparing to leap- but before he could move, a hole opened in the ground directly under him. He barely had time for a startled shout as he dropped away into nothingness, the User disappearing in a shimmering halo of light.

Boss after boss went down under Steve's relentless assault. It wouldn't be long now, he thought as he crossed the threshold into the final level.

Bob's stomach dropped out from under him as he fell for what seemed like miles. Suddenly there was a sickening _lurch_, and he jerked to an abrupt stop- then fell some more. With a painful _thump_, he hit the ground hard... _Where am I now?_ he wondered. _At least my character seems mostly immune to long drops..._

He looked down at himself, and back up again abruptly. It couldn't be! He wasn't dressed as a street bum anymore- he looked exactly the same as he had going into the game! _Am I even in the game anymore? _he wondered, as he looked around. The shimmering purple of the cube loomed less then ten feet above him. _Guess not..._ he thought. _So where am I?_

Wherever it was, Bob hadn't seen ever seen anything like it. Not in Mainframe, and not even in the Web. He was standing in a dim corner of what appeared to be a metallic, circular control room of some sort. But what was really strange was the object in the center of the otherwise empty room. A single, raised pedestal jutted out of the flooring, with ancient symbols etched all over it. At its top, a pulsating ball of eye-tearing white energy shone. Slowly, hesitatingly, Bob walked forward... reached for it... _GAME OVER_ the female voice intoned.

"There is a buildup of game energy..." Phong said expectantly. "The game is leaving!" Dot stopped pacing abruptly. "Get those med teams in there right away!" she shouted. "If he's hurt..."

"_GAME OVER_," the solemn voice announced. "_THE USER WINS_..."

Dot stopped talking mid-phrase, an expression of shock etched on her face.  "Bob..." she said numbly. Phong wheeled over slowly to comfort her. He'd seen many games lost in his lifetime, but never had he expected one to finally claim Bob's life...

"Is there any chance he might still be alive?" Dot asked, sobbing, already knowing the answer. "The chances... are vanishingly small, my child," Phong said. "I am sorry..."

The med team captain, a grizzled old 1 binome, peered hesitantly over the edge of the crater. Game cubes weren't a pleasant place to be if one was lost... he hated peering over and seeing nothing but nulls each time, squealing, racing to escape the place the cube had been...

But what was this? The captain's eyes went wide with shock as he beheld a seemingly unharmed Bob- levitating up out of the crater! He pulled out his data pad. This would be one for the history books...

Dot held her face in her hands. She'd already sent Phong away... she only wanted to be alone with her grief, now. Bob... the only sprite she'd ever really come to love. _And he never knew..._

            A Vid-Window sprang to life behind her. "Sir..." It was the captain of the med team she'd sent. She didn't answer, already knowing the truth. "Sir, we have something truly incredible to report!" he said. She turned around, hardly daring to believe. "It's a miracle, really..." _Could it be..._

The camera's view shifted, and Bob's smiling face filled the viewscreen.

            Dot was on her zip board and out the door in a nano. She didn't even bother to tell Phong the news first. She had to make _sure_... Even after seeing him on the Vid-Window, there was that tiny cynical core inside of Dot that refused to believe, that refused to think such a miracle _could_ even occur. But as she neared the crater, she could see for herself- Bob really _was_ OK. "Bob!" she gasped, throwing her arms around the surprised sprite, who nevertheless gave her a reassuring squeeze in return. "It's a miracle! _How_ did you survive? When that game cube left..." "Shhhh," he said, stroking her tear-stained face softly, "It's OK now." A crowd of binomes had gathered around, to see their Guardian back from the dead. "And if you thought _that _was amazing, just wait'll you see what's down there..."

So, what do you think so far? Nowhere _near_ as good as some of the stuff I've seen here... but please review it anyway!!! Hey, you even got to meet the User... Lol, and if anyone can think of a better summary, I'm open to suggestions... Until next time,

                                                                                                                                                                                        Tom


	3. Memories: AndrAIa

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**  OK, why does ff.net keep changing some of my fonts & placements? All of my chapter titles are bold and centered- yet in uploading, the titles are no longer boldfaced OR centered. Of course, ff.net being the way it is, it won't just accept Word documents the way they are. Either you convert them to .txt format and lose ALL fonts, italics, etc., submit it in Word format and have it _converted _to .txt, or convert it yourself into .html format and have parts of it sometimes messed up in the uploading. Sometimes I think a deranged Mac user designed this whole site… But using my chapters as a place to rant is probably a violation of terms or some such, and isn't great for reviews either… so, on with the fic!

**Memories (AndrAIa)**

**Time: Past**

Mouse, Ray, AndrAIa, Matrix, Enzo, and even Mike the TV, who had barely made it into the game but spent the entire time hiding from the Turtles, hovered into the air on their zipboards as the game cube ascended back into the sky, the wash of purple game energy leaving Mainframe unscathed one more time. "Well, I guess we did it again, Mates," Ray said cheerfully, putting an arm loosely around Mouse's shoulders. Matrix squinted into the distance, his muscles tensed. "No…" he said. "No, something's happened while we were in there! Look- over in G-Prime, over where the Tor used to be." An enormous column of smoke and dust rose above the sector, obscuring whatever might be happening beneath. "Well, Sugah," Mouse said, unsheathing her katana, "We won't find out what's going on by hovering around here. Let's go check it out!" As one, the five sprites turned and headed at top speed for G-Prime.

Meanwhile, Bob, Dot, and Phong stood over the ruins of what had once been Megabyte's Tor- reduced now to gargantuan, smoking crater. A towering EXO crane had been anchored to a nearby building, excavating the strange chamber that had somehow survived the departure of the game. "And you just… fell through the bottom of the game into this place?" Phong was asking incredulously. Bob rested with his back against a large granite boulder, still shaken by the experience. "I don't know. One minute I was falling through the lower levels of the game, and the next thing I knew I was in there." "You were very lucky, my child," Phong observed, wheeling forward. "Judging from the energy discharge surrounding that area of the crater, the room you were in was heavily shielded- even compared to the shields protecting the Principle Office. However, it is my opinion that the energy from the game cube neutralized the shields and allowed you to enter… IF the game cube hadn't been in place and IF you hadn't fallen through in that exact place, the results could have been most unfortunate…" 

            Bob's face paled noticeably. He turned to Dot, mouth open- but the green blur that knocked him to the ground made him forget whatever he had been about to say. "Bob! That was totally alphanumeric! We were in this game, and the Turtles attacked, and Mouse saved the day with this pizza, and-" "Whoa! Slow down there, Sprout! You're processing at warp speed!" Barely pausing for breath, Enzo continued, never moving from his position atop the prone Guardian. "And we stopped by the Diner on the way here and Cecil said you'd gone into the second game cube and lost, and Matrix almost _lost_ it… are you OK?" 

Dot hid a small smile. That was Enzo all over… he could talk a mile a minute and sometimes got on her nerves, but he always found a way to show those closest he really to him that cared… just like his older version did, as much as he might try to deny it. Which wasn't really surprising, as they were the same sprite…

The salvage team captain, a squat zero binome, was headed in her direction, eyes glued to his clipboard. "Sir!" he said, his voice a rough counterpoint to those of most zero binomes she'd known, "We've finished our preliminary survey- there's nothing down there except some old hardware and a high-output power source in the room's center. Whoever put it there's long gone- the dust in that place must be an inch thick!"

The strangeness of it all still made her a bit uneasy, but the captain's report was reassuring- enough so they could at least extract it from the crater and get a better look at it. It was a good thing that the game cube had landed in G-Prime- memories of the Tor had made most sprites hesitant to make their homes there after the system was liberated from Megabyte's rule, and those who had had been evacuated before the cube could land. All in all, Dot thought, they'd been _very_ lucky…

"Attach the energy cables," she said. "Let's raise it up out of the pit and see what we've got here." Saluting, the captain turned to pass the orders on to his crew. Just then, five zipboards alighted on the broken ground that bordered the enormous crater left by the lost game. "Bob!" Matrix called, running to the Guardian's side and pulling his younger form off with ease. "Are you all right, Mate?" Ray asked, walking up behind Matrix, Mouse at his side. "We thought you was done for, Sugah!" AndrAIa hung back a little, thinking that adding one more sprite to the ones already crowding Bob wouldn't accomplish much. Mike, naturally, was already down in the pit trying to sell the salvage crew a Bucket-O-Nothing. His voice drifted out to the sprites. "Just ninety-nine, ninety-nine, ninety-" "MIKE!" everyone turned and shouted as one. Thinking correctly that none of them were interested in this fabulous product, Mike began showing reruns of an old game show, much to the annoyance of the already rather annoyed crew. "Good thing we're gettin overtime for this," one muttered.

As Bob finished relating his experiences at the hands of the User, Matrix turned and walked away, sitting head in hands on a grassy knoll near the edge of the city and staring at the gaping hole where the Tor used to be. AndrAIa stepped up lightly behind him, resting a hand gently on one of the renegade's massive shoulders. "What's wrong, Sparky?" she asked, tracing a finger slowly down the side of his face. Matrix turned to her, his eyes dark, haunted. The game sprite knew the look well- Matrix was depressed about something. She leaned in and kissed him softly on the lips. "The war's over, Sparky- we did it. Score one for the good guys. We're all here, we're all safe…" She gazed into his eyes, searching for anything, even the smallest glimmer of hope. Matrix gazed back almost as if he weren't really seeing her, like he was looking straight through her… "I dunno, Andri," he said. I remember when this sector used to belong to Megabyte… We barely defeated him, and then there was Daemon. If it hadn't been for Hex we'd all have been deleted. Even now, when I saw the hole that lost game left… I thought we'd lost Bob again. It was bad enough losing him the first time- but at least then we had a _chance_ of getting him back. I dunno what I'd do with myself if he'd really been nullified in there.

AndrAIa sank down beside the renegade, intertwining her slim forearm with his muscular one. She remembered a time when he'd been like this, so long ago…

The tiny submarine sank to the rocky bottom of the ocean cave, a hollow booming sound filling the water around them. Enzo stared at the display as system after system came up red. His face turned pale as he realized that this time, he might not make it out alive. He turned to look at the game sprite he'd met only nanos ago. AndrAIA, she'd called herself. How could he explain what he'd begun to feel for her, even in the short time they'd been together? For a game sprite who would leave with the game whether he won or lost. The User's sub rematerialized, bare meters away from winning the game. Enzo realized that just like the game, his love for the sprite, for AndrAIa, was hopeless at best. But even as the User closed slowly, inexorably on the treasure, even as the final nanoseconds of his existence ticked relentlessly down, he vowed to himself that if nothing else, at least she would know the truth of his heart, his soul. For even if he lost the game, was nullified, she would continue on… and maybe that was enough. "AndrAIa?" the boy choked, the words coming out as a sob. "AndrAIa?" The game sprite's nails traced almost lovingly across the back of his neck, and without time for a second thought, Enzo dropped to the floor. AndrAIa watched sadly as her Guardian shot toward the treasure, beating the User by mere inches… and then what seemed like seconds later, falling into his open arms as tears of relief streamed down his face. For that nano, that instant was theirs… just knowing the other existed was their whole universe. They clasped hands tightly as the others stood by, amazed. It was the best feeling in the world.

AndrAIa smiled sadly, remembering Matrix as he had been… an innocent little sprite, so full of energy and ideals. Her Guardian. She'd known he wasn't really a Guardian, of course- but she'd loved him anyway. He hadn't deserved to have his youth stolen by the games, his boyish ideals ruthlessly squashed by the Web. And yet, even after he had ceased being Enzo, become Matrix, the renegade, she remembered times when he had still been the sprite she had once known. She remembered standing by his side in yet another system, after countless hours spent in the games… knowing then that he had lost all hope of ever finding Bob and returning home to Mainframe. But whatever personal revelations he'd undergone in that game, it had been enough. Determination, a new sense of purpose had filled his being, to accomplish finally what they had set out to do- and they'd done it. She reached out and grasped the renegade's hand gently, lending him what strength she could. He could be that sprite again, she knew. All it would take was time…

As one, they turned their heads toward each other, their lips brushing softly, tenderly together. No matter what threats they might face in the future, AndrAIa knew, they would always have each other…

A jarring crash of machinery drew the sprites' attention to the towering EXO crane that was lifting the mysterious object out of the pit. Binomes scattered from the site, running in all directions. "Sir!" the salvage team captain yelled, running up to Dot. "Sir, something terrible has happened… we've lost control of the crane!" Dot's mouth opened in a silent scream as the crane's arm, turned completely black, swung in a giant arc straight for her…

The action picks up in the next chapter… now since you've read this far at least leave a review! Also, if anyone can think of a better summary I'm open to suggestions. Later! -Tom


	4. Part II: Invasion

**Author's Note: **Sorry for taking so long with this update- I've been really sick for the past week or so and haven't felt like doing much of anything besides sleeping. I'm feeling better now though, and the next chapter shouldn't take as long as this one did. Anyway, I heard they hadn't released Season IV to you Aussies yet? You can download the whole season off the file-sharing programs Morpheus and Kazaa, or if you aren't into that sort of thing I can send it to you over AIM, though that'll take awhile. Anyway, here's something I thought of- think of the smallest thing you could possibly change in the Reboot universe, and write a fic off it. Like, what if Enzo _hadn't_ lost the game and been lost in the web? What if Megabyte had made it to the Supercomputer before Daemon, or Hexadecimal hadn't had Skuzzy to keep her from going totally insane? Lol, just a thought. Anyway, on with the chapter- and as always, please R&R!!! -Tom

****

**Part II: INVASION**

Time: Past 

            Dot barely had time to think as the huge arm of the EXO crane came swinging toward her in a deadly arc. She stood frozen with sheer terror, unable to move- knowing that to stay where she was would mean certain death, but unable for some reason to force herself to move. Her mouth opened in a silent scream of horror, wanting to shout for someone, _anyone_ to help her- but nothing came out. She knew then that there was no way out of this one. The final nanos seemed to stretch out to eternity in her mind, yet counted down all too swiftly toward the final, inexorable impact…

            Then out of nowhere, Ray was there. Twisting desperately as Baud swooped down out of the sky, Ray's strong arms picked her up and set her gently behind him, the crane's thundering passage mere inches from Baud's underside causing the Surfr to falter for a nano in midair. The crane arm impacted into a building with stunning force meters away, a violent explosion rocketing across G-Prime. Rock fragments and pieces of stone the size of a small car slammed into the underside of Baud with killing force as the shockwave washed outward, Ray shuddering with pain and holding together only long enough to get them safely down to the ground. 

            Energy blasts shot through the air from the far side of the crater as Matrix reacted with lightning speed, on his feet in an instant with Gun aimed at the deadly crane arm as it swung back for another strike. Blue pulses of pure energy vaporized a section of the crane close to its base on the back of the giant EXO unit. The mechanism seemed to stall abruptly in mid-swing, falling harmlessly into the pit left by the game cube's departure.

            With a roar of challenge, the towering EXO unit itself detached from the skyscraper it had been anchored to, its feet crashing to the ground with an earth-shaking impact. 

            "What's going on?" Matrix shouted over the noise of the battle, strafing the unit with short blasts from Gun as he raced toward the others on the far side of the crater. "That EXO unit's going berserk- and there's no pilot!" Phong wheeled up to where Dot lay motionless beside Ray, merged now with Baud, shuddering as he saw the seemingly crazed EXO unit's arms swinging randomly at the nearest structures, its normal color being supplanted with a deadly black that spread ever upward, finally consuming the apex of the machine. "It's gone viral!" Mouse shouted, charging into the action with her katana drawn. It had indeed, Phong realized as the machine continued its rampage through G-Prime. And it was headed straight for them.

            "Dot! You've got to get out of there!" Matrix cried as he raced toward them, barely managing to dodge as a massive EXO arm swung through the space where he'd been only nanos before. He snarled with frustration as he took aim with Gun once more. The thing was just too heavily armored- none of his shots were having any effect! A resounding _crash_ filled the air as Mouse swung furiously with her katana, managing to dismantle one of the unit's enormous arms. It wouldn't be enough, Matrix could tell, as the monster machine loomed closer and closer…

            "Dot!" he shouted again, shaking her shoulder violently. "_Listen_ to me! You've got to get out of here now! We'll _both_ be deleted if you don't _move_!" Dot didn't respond, shuddering sobs wracking her body as she curled into a tight ball next to Baud. With a growl of frustration, Matrix hoisted Dot's inert form over his shoulder, turning to run, trying to carry her to safety- but already he could see that it wouldn't be enough. The gargantuan unit was simply too fast for him burdened down with his sister- and it was Dot the thing seemed to want, he realized, as it abandoned its mindless destruction of the area's buildings to come straight for them. Matrix ran ahead desperately as the machine closed, the streets becoming too narrow as they got closer to the heart of Mainframe to dodge its relentless, rampaging pursuit.

            A thunderous explosion erupted in the streets behind them, the unit staggering from a direct hit as an enormous beam of pure energy slammed it hard into the side of a towering skyscraper. Bob levitated into the air behind it, his eyes filled with a grim sense of purpose as he readied himself for another blast. Binomes scattered in panic away from the site of the battle, desperate to escape the line of destruction that raged toward the center of Mainframe. The EXO unit turned, its one remaining arm swinging furiously toward the gadfly that had dared to sting it so- and Matrix saw his chance. A weak spot appeared in the giant's gleaming, armored skin scarred now by battle damage. A small patch of armor had been torn clean away near the machine's power core, the reactor's red glow visible beneath inner armor belt. If he could just hit that one spot…

            Matrix's bionic eye swiveled in it socket, targeting the beast that tried to swat the valiant Guardian out of the sky. "Gun… command line. Targeting…" His face furrowed into a mask of concentration as the gleaming red reticule centered over the unit's power core. "High Ex!" 

            The machine swung again, Bob darting quickly out of the way as the arm's momentum carried it into an elderly binome, sending him flying into a nearby building. With a roar of rage, Matrix pulled hard on the trigger. Gun's report was loud in his own ears as the explosive round streaked forward, directly on target. The EXO unit roared in frustration as the explosion knocked it to the ground, windows shattering all over the district as the high-compression shockwave hit. His face pale as he concentrated all his energy into one final blast, Bob's hands shot forward, a massive beam finishing what Matrix had started: the final belt of armor was torn away, and the machine shuddered as its power source shut down. Mouse leapt from a nearby awning with katana poised, not sure if the machine was completely offline as Bob slumped to the ground, exhausted by the furious battle. 

AndrAIa and the others came up beside him as a crowd of binomes began to gather around the downed behemoth, gesturing excitedly at the monster machine that had devastated half a sector. Med teams raced onto the scene, paramedics carrying wounded binomes away on stretchers. "Are you all right, Sugah?" Mouse asked gently, putting an arm around Dot's shaking shoulders. "No…" she whispered, lifting her tear-streaked face to look into the hacker's concerned eyes. "I thought all this was finally over… and now it's happening all over again." "At least the threat's over for now," AndrAIa said, her trident extended as she walked up to stand beside the others. 

"Yeah," Matrix said as he snapped Gun back into its holster, its barrel hot from the past few minutes of constant firing. "But what made it go berserk like that- and how would a virus somehow make it past all Mouse's protections to invade Mainframe?" With these troubling questions occupying their minds, the sprites turned and walked through the open doorway of the Principal Office, the spread of heavy shields mushrooming out behind them.

Hmm, so what'd you think? My first "action" chapter for the Reboot fandom so far… if you've actually read all the way up to this point, please leave a review! Thanks, lol –Tom

Damn, these chapters are SHORT when I look back at them! In comparison to the fics I used to write for other fandoms, or most of the other ones here in the Reboot section… don't know what it is exactly, that makes me write ten times less in the same amount of time. How do y'all do it! lol


	5. Part III: The Last Night

**Author's Note:** Apparently being suspended from school means being suspended from the computer... yet another excuse not finishing this earlier, albeit a true one. So I purchased my own (secondhand, mind you) and though it's not very good, at least I can write on it. On a brighter note, with exams finished this week I've got the whole summer ahead of me now, and if I'm not too busy doing web pages updates should pick up. Hats off to Dan for a wonderful conclusion to his long-running _Guardian Blues_ fanfic, I look forward to seeing more of your work soon- and to Claire Hunter, the only author ever to name a Reboot character _Ernest_. With that said, on with the story... my author's notes are getting to be about as long as the chapters themselves, lol! I'll try and make this one a bit longer though...

**Part III: The Last Night**

Time: Past 

**(Late at night, after "Invasion")**

            Mouse leaned gently against the doorway to the Principle Office infirmary, listening to the soft, measured, regular breaths of the sprite inside. Surfr... strange, how he had come to her. The only reason he had helped the crew of the Saucy Mare at all had been because of AndrAIa- that, and needing a quick exit out of the system he had been imprisoned in. With the help of Bob he had even gotten past all her security measures to return to Mainframe... and there weren't many sprites in the Net or even the Web who could have done that. Mouse sighed, watching the Surfr's chest rise and fall slowly with the intake of each breath. Their relationship had been mainly that of friends so far, fellow daredevils really- she smiled, remembering the times they'd had. 

But lately she couldn't deny a growing sense of intimacy- that perhaps, in being so drawn to adventure they'd become more drawn to each other. She hadn't even really thought about it until she saw him get hurt out there, that day. The thought that he might never share those adventures with her again, might have been _deleted_... it was almost too much to bear. Seeing him lying there in such pain, each breath an agony even in his sleep almost broke her heart... that, and the memories. All the times they'd been together, in rare moments of peace or in heavy combat- sometimes coming mere nanos from deletion, and she'd never told him how she really felt. She sighed softly as she pictured him as he had been- equally at ease flying alongside Ship in the depths of the Web as he was in casual conversation And he _had _been quite the ladies' man, she remembered with a smile. A sudden presence behind her caused her to whirl around cat-quick, hand on the hilt of her katana ready to strike. Phong blinked in surprise, rolling back a step. Mouse's tensed muscles relaxed at the sight of the old sprite, and her hand dropped to her side. 

"Would you... like a cup of cocoa?" Phong asked hesitantly. Mouse laughed, some of the nervous tension over Ray and Dot and the others melting away. Phong looked at her quizzically, doubtless wondering just what in the Net was so funny- but she shook her head in response to his unspoken question. "Sorry, Sugah," she said, reaching for the mug Phong held in his outstretched hand, "I'm just worried about Ray." "Ah," Phong said, nodding sagely. "The Surfr will be fine- he just needs to rest. As do you, my child," he said, raising the mug to his mouth and taking a sip. "I know that, Sugah," she said, taking a sip of cocoa, "It's just-" "You love the Surfr very much, don't you?" Phong said, his startling blue eyes gazing into hers. Mouse hesitated, caught off-guard by the question. She thought about it for a nano. His flippant, devil-may-care attitude could be a bit of a turnoff for some people at first- like Matrix, she thought, stifling a very un-Mouse-like giggle. But all the times they'd been together, all the experiences they shared- she nodded slowly, taking another sip of her cocoa. 

The elderly sprite's mouth curved into what could almost have been a smile as he turned. "I'll leave you two alone then, my child," he said. "It is far too late for an old sprite such as myself to be up and around anyway." With a last glance backward at the pair, Phong rolled off down the hallway. Mouse cradled the mug still-warm mug in her hands, the delicious scent wafting upward, considering the old sprite's words. It was then that she became aware of the room's other occupant. Across the room, back turned to her, Bob stood over Dot's bed. He could have been there for minutes or hours- Mouse blushed at what he might have overheard. _I must be slipping, _she thought. _I should have noticed him standing there the moment he walked in_. She walked softly, soundlessly to where Bob stood, watching as he lovingly traced a line from Dot's forehead down to her cheek. 

"What a pair we make," she said, laughing softly. Bob turned in surprise, having been so absorbed that he hadn't even noticed Mouse walk up. _Bob_, Mouse thought to herself. He had been the only other guy she had ever really been interested in- she remembered their first encounter, with him fresh from the Academy, so full still of his boyish ideals... as Ray was, to some extent. She supposed that was another thing that attracted her in men. "What do you mean?" Bob asked, in response to her earlier question. "Just the two of us, standing here in the moonlight... like a pair of lost lovers or somethin." She glanced upward at Mainframe's peaceful night sky. It wasn't a real window, of course- such a weak point could not be allowed in the Principle Office's armored shell. But a vidwindow mounted in the roof did almost as well, she supposed- Bob certainly reminded her of his younger days in the soft light, the angle of which hid most of his web scars. 

He looked so romantic standing there, looking off into the distance as if lost in thought- and his occasional glances back at her suggested he found her at least the same. Bob coughed self-consciously, embarassed that she'd caught him looking. Then for Mouse, the memories, the nervous tension, and her incredible longing for someone, almost _anyone_, to love and be loved by for once in her life- they all became too much. Abruptly, she grabbed Bob with both hands and, tilting his head back, kissed him long and hard- an unbridled passion that was unique to her in its intensity. "Mouse!" Bob gasped when she finally let him up for air. But she was already gone, as if, for once, almost embarrassed by what she'd just done. Bob stared after her, wondering what in the Net- "Sweet dreams, Sugah," Mouse's voice floated back to him as she headed for her own room. Turning slowly to do the same himself, he remembered a time not so long ago, really... he was just out of the Academy, and he'd caught her hacking into the system's computer banks. He'd turned her in at once, of course- what loyal Cadet wouldn't? 

He'd even received a personal commendation from Turbo himself about it- but the papers for it were long ago burned and forgotten. He'd regretted afterward, in a way, turning Mouse in that night- she'd looked the same then when he'd stumbled on her as she had this night- intriguing, exotic. Beautiful. He couldn't deny that there was some attraction there, even as his conscience screamed denial, betrayal of Dot over the whole incident. And maybe it wasn't right- scratch that, he _knew_ it wasn't right. _But in the end_, he thought, deleting the light as he tucked into his docking bay, _Does it really even matter?_ A rare smile lighting Bob's web-scarred features, the Guardian drifted slowly off to sleep.

            Meanwhile, forgotten in the days' intense battle and the fading light of the setting moon, in the vast crater left by the departing game of last cycle, the mysterious object the crane arm had been lifting began to glow- emitting soft, regular pulses in the darkness of the early morning. Soon, it knew, the time would be right- and then the real attack would begin...

A/N: OK, I did NOT expect the chapter to turn out that way. I'd planned to introduce the next "action" scene here, with a short interlude for some Bob/Dot romance... but things turned out a bit differently, and I suppose I'll save that for the next chapter. Look for another update _tomorrow_ (that's right, lol!) and if anyone's bothered to read this far, please R&R! Comments, criticisms, and even rants from Bob/Mouse haters or supporters are welcome ;-)


	6. Part IV: Prophecy

**Author's Note:** For once, I have nothing to rant about. Enjoy. –Tom

**Part IV: Prophecy**

**Time: Past**

            Enzo yawned, dreams once more slowly giving way to reality. Images flashed before him, of a time and place long ago now in Mainframe's history- yet not so long ago to the young sprite who swung his legs slowly over the edge of the docking bay, rubbing his eyes sleepily. AndrAIa... his dreams had been of AndrAIa again. _It seems like only yesterday you were by my side_, he thought, remembering. _The way you used to laugh at my jokes, even when they weren't funny_..._ the way you could light up a whole room even during the war, just by being there_..._ the way you stood with me against Megabyte, even when things looked hopeless_._ Then one morning, I woke up and the world had changed around me_._ You're all grown up now, and I'm still just a kid_._ I'll never see that same sweet, innocent smile again_..._ at least, not in the same way_._ I'll always love you, AndrAIa_... _but you'll never be mine again_._ Because I'm just a backup_..._ a copy_. 

He ran a hand sleepily across his face, much like his older self often did, and glanced across the room at the chronometer. He blinked. _Crash!_ He'd overslept... again. _Some responsible behavior for a "Guardian", Enzo!_ He kicked himself mentally. Booting into his clothes he ran out the door without bothering to make his bed, hoping they'd waited the meeting on him.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Principle Office staff had gathered in the War Room, unused since Daemon's defeat. Screens and vidwindows flashed to life all around them, showing at once everything that was happening in all of Mainframe. It was the nexus, the nerve center of all Mainframe's defense- a role which Dot, as Command.com, had the overwhelming responsibility of filling. "There is extensive damage throughout sector G-Prime as a result of the EXO unit's rampage," Phong was saying. "We were lucky we defeated it as soon as we did- otherwise, the damage could easily have been much worse." Bob cast a sidelong glance at Mouse, remembering that brief moment from the night before- and blushed when he saw her staring boldly back. A hint of a smile creased Mouse's face, and she turned her attention back to the briefing. 

"But what worries me most," Phong was saying, "Is this." The angle on the main viewscreen shifted to a rear shot of the rampaging EXO armor, showing a polished black exterior marred only by what appeared to be an irregular series of deep marks gouged into its upper torso. "Enhance," Phong said, peering intently at the screen as the view zoomed in. There were gasps of surprise from around the room. Dot frowned, staring at the picture until she saw the same thing the others did. "It's not battle damage..." she said, leaning forward to take a closer look. "The marks are actually some sort of code- written in an ancient language. Pascal, I think." 

She squinted, adjusting her glasses. " 'The giant shall emerge from slumber deep, so from the darkness try to keep... but soon the mighty city falls, and the enemy within consumes them all.' " Dot looked up at Phong. "What is this?" she asked. "Some kind of joke?" "It is no joke, my child," Phong said, meeting her gaze. "What worries me is not the message itself- but that that same dark prophecy is stored within the deepest levels of Mainframe's Archives." The atmosphere of the War Room seemed to darken as the sprites digested this information. 

Suddenly, an earth-shaking _thud_ reverberated throughout the Principle Office. Alarm klaxons wailed in the distance as the main viewscreen shifted to show an aerial view of Mainframe. "Something's happening!" Dot shouted, typing rapidly on her datapad. "We're reading an explosion in G-Prime- Level 9 shockwave inbound!" "What's going on?" Matrix bellowed, hand instinctively reaching for Gun. "Shields to full!" Dot shouted. "Brace yourselves!" The main viewscreen distorted as the shockwave radiated out from the site of the explosion, washing over Mainframe and leaving destruction and pandemonium in its path. The ground shook under the Principle Office as the blast hit, the floor seeming to buck and roll under the sprites as they struggled to keep their feet. The monitors erupted in a wash of static, the ground stabilizing as the aftereffects of the blast faded. 

"Status report!" Dot ordered. "Sir!" Specky said from his workstation. "Shields holding at 80 percent. Restoring external video feed now." The squat zero binome typed rapidly away on his data pad. Slowly, one by one, monitors winked back on to show sheer chaos in the wake of the explosion's earth-shaking climax. Panicking binomes filled debris-strewn streets, a few of the flimsier structures having toppled over from the force. One area, however, remained shrouded in thick, dark smoke. The area in G-Prime where the Silicon Tor had been located, all that time ago...

            "Megabyte's legacy lives on," Mouse said bitterly. "Something's going on in G-Prime," Matrix said, Gun in hand. "We've got to find out what caused that explosion- before whatever it is has a chance to do more harm." "Deploy the med teams," Dot said, her face tensed and pale. "I want the guard units to establish a perimeter around the Principle Office- no ones gets in. Keep those shields up at all costs."

            "But what about the rest of Mainframe?" Matrix demanded. "Our priority right now is ensuring the safety of the Principle Office," Dot responded. "Until we know more about the situation, I can't risk that." "Someone has to check out whatever triggered that explosion," Matrix pressed, "Before it has a chance to do irreparable harm!" 

            "I'll go," Bob said, standing up. "I can't allow that!" Dot said with an exasperated look. "You're still too weak after what happened yesterday to even _think_ about doing anything besides resting." "Look," Bob said, frustrated, leaning forward with hands down on the table, "I know what I can handle. There's just been a major explosion in G-Prime if you weren't watching- half the sector must have gone up in that blast! I just think I'm the one best qualified to check it out- before whatever caused it destroys the rest of Mainframe!" "Bob," Dot said, her lower lip trembling slightly, "You know how I feel about you. I just don't want to see you get hurt again- not after all that's already happened. If you truly loved me, you wouldn't go." 

            "Just what does that sprite have to do to prove his love for you!" Mouse shouted. "After all he's done for you, the least you could do would be to consider what he wants to do- not to mention what's right for the rest of Mainframe! I think it's time you stopped thinking of yourself, and put the needs of Bob and this entire system ahead of your own selfish motivations!" "Just what are you implying?" Dot shouted. "I'm _implying_ that you step down for _once_ and consider the needs of someone besides yourself, you coldhearted bastard!"

            With a scream of rage, Dot surged to her feet, reaching for the blaster pistol she kept holstered at her side. "Don't even think about it," Mouse hissed, the light glinting off her half-drawn katana. "Hey- what's going on?" a voice came from the doorway.

            The sprites all froze in position, heads turning as one toward the single entrance to the War Room. Enzo Matrix stood in the doorway, jaw agape at the confrontation he saw taking place before him. "Enzo-" Dot said, hand dropping from her blaster. "Dot?" Enzo said, his voice hesitant, almost breaking with what he sensed had been about to happen. "Oh, dear..." Phong said, wheeling backward a step. "This isn't over!" Mouse snarled, turning on her heel and sheathing her half-drawn weapon. "Matrix and I will check out the blast site- the rest of you, stay put. We'll finish this later," she said over her shoulder, the hangar bay doors hissing shut behind her as she headed for Ship's cockpit. A single tear rolled down Enzo's face as Dot walked over to him, trying to comfort him- but he shook off the arm she put around his shoulders and ran crying from the room. Dot's shoulders shook with muffled sobs as she headed for her own docking bay. How could she have allowed this to happen? How?

A/N: Hmmm, drama. Review, please. -Tom


	7. Part V: Revelations

**Author's Note:** Man, am I sunburned... just spent the entire day at a water park, feeling pretty burned out. Anyway, I realize that Mouse and Dot in particular were more than a little out of character in the last chapter- there is a reason for this. As I said way back in the prologue, "it may get a little confusing at times- bear with me, the fic explains itself as it goes along." Some of you seem a bit quick to condemn me; I especially enjoyed Kermit's rather graphic description of what he thought I was trying to do- but just to relieve any misconceptions of the direction I'm taking this, I've made the next couple chapters extra long. I was going to write both tonight, but it took a little longer than expected- it's 4 AM here, gimme a break! Lol, anyway, just bear with me a little bit longer, read through the next couple chapters, and all will become clear. I promise, lol. K? On a side note, for those of you interested in writing collaborative fics, there's a new thing Claire told me about. The author name is ROM, go check it out. And WHY does almost nothing I put in italics, save in italics, and upload in italics NEVER appear on ff.net IN ITALICS? Can someone PLEASE answer me that? Lol, with that said, I've bored you enough, those that are still with me here, lol. On with the fic!

**Part V:** **Revelations  **

**                                                     Time: Past** (as chapters will be for quite awhile)

The cool, dark hallways of the Principal Office were deathly quiet as Dot paced silently near her room, cradling a cup of hot cocoa in her hands. Phong had said the drink helped him to relax, but it wasn't working its magic for her at the moment. She absently plucked at the uniform she wore as Command.com... a uniform she felt she didn't deserve, at the moment. What had happened in the War Room just a few nanos ago? The meeting seemed to be proceeding smoothly and then everyone had just seemed to _explode_ at her. How could she let something that was supposed to be so logical, so cool and removed degenerate into total chaos like that? The shouting, her stubborn refusal to let Bob go, and even pulling a weapon on Mouse... was she really that kind of person? 

_I think it's time you stopped thinking of yourself, and put the needs of Bob and this entire system ahead of your own selfish motivations!_ Mouse...

Am I really like that? Have I gotten so used to giving orders during the war, getting what I want immediately and not seeing exactly what those orders cost, of lives, of Mainframe... that I've become the person she hates, that she says I am without even knowing it?

Bob... I know what I can handle... I just think I'm the one best qualified to check it out- before whatever caused it destroys the rest of Mainframe.

Have I put my own desires above the needs of Mainframe? Has my love for Bob blinded me to the fact that he has needs of his own? Duties, responsibilities, enemies I can't always protect him from? Just what have I done?

Then perhaps the greatest of her mistakes... Enzo... How could I let him see all that? I was lucky enough to get a second chance with him, and I vowed I would protect him whenever I could, never let him grow up like Matrix- no one to love him, to watch out for him... And yet the single worst thing in his life has come from me. To watch his sister and one of our closest friends like that, ready to draw weapons on each other, perhaps even to kill...

Would I have killed Mouse? she asked herself. Given how I was feeling then, everything spiraling of my control, everyone screaming at me at once... could I have done such a thing? The answer to her inner question was disturbing.

A single tear rolled down her cheek. The only thing I can do now is fix whatever I can... I'll talk to Mouse as soon as she gets back. She flinched at the thought of how painful that would be. And Enzo... As much as she didn't want to have to explain to him what had happened, she knew it was the right thing to do... The only thing I can do. With a sigh of resignation, she walked back into her room and set her cup on the counter, booting from her uniform into something more casual. It was time to talk to Enzo, for better or for worse... to begin reparations for all she had done.

Mouse leaned back as Ship leveled off, hitting its cruising altitude and heading for the blast site... G-Prime. The former location of the Tor. Her muscles tensed in anticipation at the thought of it. She hadn't been in a real fight, hand-to-hand and not from a distance like Dot liked it, since Megabyte... so long ago now, it seemed. This one should be interesting. Her hand rested idly on the hilt of her katana, a single thought whispering like the caress of a deadly lover through the innermost recesses of her mind: Action, at last. 

Matrix sat in the copilot's seat next to her, his face tensed, brooding. She knew what he must be thinking, about all that had happened back at the War Room just a few nanos ago. What does it matter, anyway? she thought. In just a few nanos this will all be over- one way or the other. Strange, she thought, the thought somehow absurd after everything that had transpired, If I should die, if whatever it is down in that blast pit should finally best me, then I won't have to worry about what Dot or Bob or any of the others thinks. In a way, it will be a release... And deep down, Mouse knew, she longed for that release. No matter how much she tried to deny it, there was always the shame... for the things she had said, for the people she'd hurt, and for how much she inwardly seemed to like all the fighting, to thrive on it somehow... 

She'd always laugh it off, say she was just trying to "live life to the fullest" or something like that- but the wounds were always there, just beneath the surface. She wondered if any of the others ever saw how it really affected her... even things said in anger like what she'd said to Dot. Odd, how just a few nanos can seem to forever change your life...

Matrix reached over and quickly reset Ship's autopilot for new coordinates. Mouse looked over, ready to yell at him- but stopped when she realized the new destination was Floating Point Park. "What are you doing, Matrix?" she asked, caught between anger and concern at the big green sprite. Matrix looked down, the same brooding expression on his face. "Nothing," he said at last. "I just... need to think a minute, OK?" "If you say so, Sugah," Mouse said, leaning back in her seat as Ship's landing gear descended.

Enzo lay facedown on his docking bay, kicking aimlessly at the covers as he thought about what had happened, back in the War Room. He'd seen what was happening between Dot and Mouse; that was obvious. But what he'd done afterward... some Guardian material he was turning out to be. He'd had a real chance to make things better there for a second- but instead he'd only managed to make things worse. Just like he always did...

For some reason, seeing Dot and Mouse fight had affected him more deeply than it should have. Maybe the thought that they'd both drawn weapons, to injure, perhaps even to kill each other... A fresh tear rolled down Enzo's cheek. He buried his head into his pillow, trying to stop the flow. You're a Guardian, spammit! he said to himself. Stop it! What would AndrAIa think of you now? 

That was something else that bothered him. The way he'd run crying from the room like a basic sprite had just made everything worse... and how could AndrAIa ever think of him as anything but "Little Sparky," or "Young Enzo," if he kept doing basic things like that? He knew Matrix had been troubled by what was going on- they were the same sprite, after all- but at least the big sprite had kept his cool. What he'd done, to himself, to everybody... he'd never live this down. Lowering his head onto his pillow, he sobbed brokenly into it, knowing that at least now, no one could see or hear him.

Someone knocked at the door. He ignored it, burrowing deeper into his pillow, wishing he could just sink into the earth and it would all go away...

Another knock. "Enzo?" Dot's voice. "Enzo? Can I come in? We need to talk for a nano." Enzo's face scrunched up again, her voice bringing back memories of that painful instant, just standing in the doorway seeing everything...

"Enzo?" the voice pressed. "Go away... just go away," the boy sobbed, his voice broken, the way it sounded making him want to cry even harder. Outside Enzo's room, Dot Matrix turned away, tears streaming silently down her face as well.

Matrix sat in one of the secret places he'd known in the park as a boy. You'd never know it was there, just walking by- a thick clump of bushes obscured it from view, and a small rocky precipice jutted out over a pool in the creek below. And not much farther away, the ground dropped away, providing a breathtaking view of the rest of Mainframe.

Matrix looked down at his reflection in the pool, chunking a rock aimlessly into the center, marring its mirror-like perfection but for an instant, until his face shimmered back into view in the rippling waves. Mouse sat down beside him, sitting comfortably on the spongy grass. 

"What's wrong, Sugah?" she asked, eyes seeking his downturned face. "I dunno, Mouse," he said, head lifting to look her in the eyes. "It's just, I thought all the fighting was finally over, you know? Then there was that EXO unit that went berserk, and that explosion in G-Prime...and finally what happened in the War Room just now. I'm tired of fighting, Mouse... it was some distant romantic dream when I was Young Enzo, and I lived for it in the Games, loved it even, against old Megabyte. But now I'm just tired... of everything. Why can't there be peace, just for once here in Mainframe? Why us?"

"Maybe fighting is just the way of things," Mouse said. "Maybe that's all life is- just living from one battle to the next, trying to protect yourself and the ones you love... until death provides a release." She walked to the edge of the cliff, looking down at the beautiful view before her. There are worse ways to die, she thought wistfully. One more step and I wouldn't have to worry about Dot, or Ray or Bob or even this new enemy. Just one more step...

The thin ground at the edge of the cliff crumbled under her, and with a sharp cry she started to fall backward, over the edge. Mouse knew suddenly that she didn't want to die- that perhaps, after all, there were things to live for. Like Ray... and Bob.  Mouse screamed as she fell away into nothingness, time seeming to slow to a crawl as the cliff fell further and further away. Then came a jarring crash, and Mouse knew no more.

"Mouse!" Matrix shouted as the hacker's scream shattered the peaceful stillness of Floating Point Park. He surged forward, grasping frantically at something, anything he could grab onto... an ankle. He held on for all he was worth as Mouse's forward momentum carried her into the cliffside, her head impacting with a sharp crack. Desperately, he pulled Mouse up, over the lip of the cliff, hoping against hope that she was all right. A thin ribbon of blood flowed from one temple, but other than that she seemed fine... Matrix rushed over to the pool, cupping a handful of freezing water in his hands and splashing it over the hacker's face. "Mouse! Mouse!" he shouted, shaking her, hoping she wasn't...

The hacker groaned, opening her eyes slowly, blinking in the sudden light. "Sugah?" she said hesitantly. "Mouse!" Matrix cried in relief. "What- what happened?" she said groggily. "I thought I was done for." "You almost were," Matrix said, explaining what had happened. "Maybe what you said is true, that that's just the way the world works- but I don't have to accept it. Not today, at least," he said, grasping her hand in his and helping her to her feet. "Come on- let's find out what caused the explosion and get you to the infirmary," he said, wiping away the trickle of blood flowing from her temple. "You don't look so good."

"I don't feel so good either, Sugah," she said, her face visibly paling as she tried to put weight on her left foot. "My ankle's busted- I'm not going to be much help to you down there." She smiled thinly, leaning on the renegade for support as they walked slowly back toward Ship. "You sure you don't want to wait, go back to the Principal Office first?" "No, Sugah," she gasped, accidentally putting to much weight on her injured ankle. "We've got to find out what caused that explosion- before whatever it is strikes again." "If you say so," Matrix said doubtfully, strapping her into the copilot's seat as Ship's cockpit hissed shut. He worked the controls, and Ship hovered off slowly into the sky...

The mysterious object in the center of the blast crater, become now the epicenter of a rising storm of anger and raw emotion, continued its soft, regular pulses of light- pulses that emitted a deadly secret weapon. Its pulses grew faster, as if eager for more. It could sense it- all over Mainframe, binomes, sprites were breaking apart under the stress. An air of panic filled the streets surrounding the crater and soon, it knew, sheer chaos would reign. Chaos to which it would bring a new, different sort of order...

Its sensors registered a small blip as an object set down in the crater not far from its location. Intruders! Its upper vents flared in small flashes of steam. It was early yet for phase two... but the intuders had left it no choice. The elimination of the behemoth exoskeleton meant its primary goal couldn't be achieved right away, and if the two sprites that even now proceeded toward it discovered it in its present condition, all would be lost. The vents clicked slowly into place, rusty now after so long underground. Its pulses increasing now in frequency and intensity, it waited for the two sprites to close...

The dust rose in clouds as Ship settled onto the ground in what had once been a dense urban area in G-Prime. It had become a wasteland now, Matrix saw. Desert sands swirled past the viewport, and it was clear that nothing could exist here now, in this most inhospitable of conditions. Nothing could survive here for very long at all. Matrix cracked the cockpit door, stepping out into the whirling maelstrom of sand and debris. "Just wait here!" he called back as the door hissed shut once again. "I'll be back before you know it!" Flashing him a tight-lipped, pain-wracked grin, Mouse gave him a thumbs-up gesture as he started off toward the center of it- the place that started it all. 

Despite his nonchalant words and the soaring temperature in the area, Matrix shivered, drawing Gun out of its holster. Whatever was waiting for him down there, he hoped he really would be back soon... and he sensed it now. Something really was waiting for him down there... and he could only pray to the User he'd survive it. He rubbed the back of his neck absently. His head was pounding, had been since that meeting in the War Room... only now it was much worse. Once he finished surveying the blast site, he'd head for a quick drink at Al's- maybe that would take the edge off the pain. Suddenly, ahead in the gloom, he saw it- the round, silver ovoid they'd tried to pull out of the crater that day... the object he knew had infected the EXO crane arm. What else could have done such a thing? Megabyte's legacy lives on, he thought grimly. For the place the thing was sitting was almost exactly at the former location of Megabyte's Tor. The evil we do lives after us, he thought, remembering how the place had looked when Megabyte was still in charge. But this time, I'm going to end Megabyte's legacy... once and for all.

The thing just sat there, pulsing with a rhythmic red glow... and abruptly, vents mounted along its topside snapped open in a flash of white-hot steam. Matrix raised Gun, trigger finger at the ready- but by then it was far too late. A sound unlike any Matrix had ever heard emitted from the newly opened ports. It was so high-pitched he could barely hear it- but it seemed to assault his ears, his mind relentlessly, the pain in his head so blinding it was impossible to think, to move. He clapped his hands over his ears, dropping Gun, trying to make the pain go away... but it only seemed to get even worse. Above the renegade's harsh, desperate scream, a distant voice could be heard: "WARNING, INCOMING GAME. WARNING, INCOMING GAME..."

Enzo lay on his bed, staring up at the roof, eyes half closed and almost asleep. Another knocking came at the door. He rolled over. "Go away," he mumbled sleepily. "Hey there, Little Sparky." AndrAIa's voice. "Can I come in?" Sitting up, he rubbed his head, which had been aching since today's meeting in the War Room. "Sure," he said, hoping his voice didn't sound too ragged. The thought of what she might think of him now made him flinch inwardly as the door hissed open. The slim game sprite closed the door behind her, unfolding her luxurious legs and stretching out full length to lay on the bed next to Enzo. "You don't mind, do you?" she asked, her lips curving into a dazzling smile. Enzo could only shake his head, looking at her. Her beautiful body had always had that effect on him... he remembered, back even before the reboot, being speechless when she turned those beautiful eyes on him... he suspected Matrix was still that way as well.

"Are you OK, Enzo?" she asked, leaning back on the pillow. "It's all right, Andri, really, it's just-" Now or never... Guardian, he thought to himself. Do it now- or you'll regret it for the rest of your life. "AndrAIa," he said, steeling himself. "I love you," he said simply, unable from the raw emotion to keep his voice from choking. "I have ever since, ever since I met you... and then after the reboot..." tears streaming down his face, he stopped, unable to continue... hating himself for his weakness. "It's hard, Andri," he said, looking up into those beautiful azure eyes of hers once more... the very sight making him want to scream, for the thought of never knowing such a thing again- at least, not as Matrix now did. "Shh, Shh..." AndrAIa said, placing a finger against his lips. Moving forward, softly, gently, she kissed him tenderly on the mouth. His sobs stopping slowly, he looked back at her... she was smiling gently down at him again. His arms went around her, truly happy for once, for the first time since the reboot. He knew it couldn't last- but for one nano, for that one instant in his life, he had her back again. He closed his eyes, remembering AndrAIa as she once had been- picturing that tiny, innocent sprite in his arms once more. A tear escaped from the corner of his eye- not of pain this time, but of love... for once, of contentment. He felt like he could stay like this forever, and never want to do anything else...

AndrAIa held him, rocking softly back and forth, back and forth. She drew back a moment, studying him, comparing him to the sprite she once knew. Surprising herself, she felt a jolt of pain, of longing to return to the past, to the way it once was- but she knew it could never be. "Believe me, Enzo," she said, speaking this time from the heart. "I know what you're feeling- I know how hard it is. It's just-" her arms went slack around Enzo's middle. He stared up at her as her eyes went slowly wide. He flinched backward as AndrAIa shot up off the bed, the peaceful stillness of the room shattered by the game sprite's shrill scream. She palmed the door open and ran from the room, her voice fading as the door hissed closed once more. What have I done? Enzo thought, trembling. She never deserved this. What have I done, to hurt someone I love like that? I'm not a Guardian... I never will be. I'm just a pathetic, basic sprite... just like I'll always be, to her. To everyone... The ache in his head growing, he pushed his face back down into the pillow, his whole world come crashing down around him.

Dot paced the War Room, waiting for the dust to clear out of G-Prime so she could see what was going on. Mouse and Matrix had been gone a long time now, and despite her earlier words she hoped they were okay. Phong wheeled into the room, doubtless wanting to chide her for standing in one spot for so long, studying the screen relentlessly- hoping to glean some minor, overlooked detail from the scant amount of information already available. 

But whatever he had been about to say vanished from his lips as the door hissed open and AndrAIa came running through behind him, screaming hysterically and clawing at her ears. "What has happened, my child?" Phong asked, somewhat alarmed. "Can't you hear it?" AndrAIa wailed. "It's terrible!" Phong looked around, locking the door shut behind her- but saw nothing. "Computer!" Dot's voice rang from her position in the War Room as Command.com- in command, it seemed, once again. "Analyze and track unknown audio source. Provide visual representation on the main vidwindow." 

Faint waves began to appear on the viewscreen, growing clearer, darker, as the computer picked up more data. The waves emanated outward in a circular direction, like ripples in a pond, covering all of Mainframe... and the source of those ripples was the place she had sent Mouse and Matrix in to investigate... the one place she most feared it would be. "Oh, dear," Phong said, watching the waves cascade out from the area in G-Prime still covered by enormous clouds of dust, obscuring any view they might have had. "What does this mean?" Dot demanded, fingers tightening on the railing as she stared at the viewscreen before her, unsure what to make of it all. 

Phong wheeled forward, uttering a single, simple, fatal phrase: "It has begun."

A/N: OK, those of you who are still with me, please review! It isn't much to ask, and if you've read this far, the least you can do is review it now, for better or for worse... until next time, Tom.


	8. Part VI: The Fall of G-Prime

**Author's Note:** Updates may become increasingly delayed in the future. I now have two fics running, this one and "I Love You, AndrAIa", plus ROM (which is online as of today, by the way) and besides dividing my time between them, I'm getting sort of depressed about the way my writing seems to be going. I'm sure some of you are familiar with it: I've hit a sort of plateau. My writing doesn't seem to be improving any really, which was one of my main goals when I started writing for this fandom. The idea for _Enemy_ especially that I've envisioned since the beginning seems to be fading, and the chapters turning out shorter and of less quality than I would have liked. All in all, I think I need a fresh perspective on things, so after this chapter I'm going to take a short break from writing- except for ROM, which I feel I need to support since I'm the one who created it. I'm going to spend a much longer time on future chapters, trying to make each one a little more perfect, and who knows? Maybe one day I'll succeed, lol. It IS better for me than writing each chapter in one exhausting all-night session, I'll admit. The Reboot fandom is my favorite to date, and one I'm going to stay with- but just be aware, this is my last chapter for now and it may be awhile until my next update. I'll try to make this one a bit longer, K? Lol, enjoy. –Tom

**PART VI: ****The Fall of G-Prime**

AndrAIa collapsed to the floor motionless, unconsciousness claiming her as the high-frequency waves attacked her hearing and her mind. "What _is_ it?" Dot asked, staring horrified at the game sprite's inert form on the floor of the War Room. "We need med teams in here now!" Phong stared intently at the viewscreen, eyes wide at what he saw: the waves spreading slowly from the impact crater like ripples in a pond, covering all of Mainframe with their distortions. "They- they are using sine waves against us!" Phong said, visibly rattled. "What?" Dot asked, distracted as med teams of binomes arrived, carrying the unconscious game sprite from the room. "We are facing sine waves," Phong said evenly. "No one knows exactly how they are generated, but they interface directly with the brainwaves of sprites and binomes alike- that pattern is unmistakable." 

"But what does this mean?" Dot asked, clutching the railing. "And why did whatever it is affect AndrAIa more than the rest of us?" "The game sprite's condition is caused by a type of sonic weapon, my child- unnoticeable by most sprites and binomes at this distance. In fact, Principle Office shields should compensate to screen that out momentarily. As for what it means, my child... Mouse and Matrix may be in grave danger." A single tear rolled down Dot's cheek as she watched the clouds of dust and debris churn over G-Prime. Their interference made it impossible to contact Mouse and Matrix... but in spite of what might be happening to them even now, Dot didn't want those clouds to dissipate. She feared whatever might be revealed once the concealing clouds departed... even though she didn't want to admit it, she feared what disaster that might spell. For her... and for Mainframe. 

            "WARNING... INCOMING GAME. WARNING... INCOMING GAME." The words were all Matrix could hear as blackness encroached on the edges of his vision, his consciousness fading in and out. In the distance he could hear a shrill scream as Mouse, inside Ship's cockpit, was undoubtedly experiencing the same thing- but it was all so distant... so removed now from his own losing battle to stay conscious. To live. Soon even that will faded, being drowned out by the overwhelming agony that had become his whole universe as the renegade slipped slowly into inky blackness...

            Mouse awoke first, consciousness returning slowly to her as she blinked dazedly in the half-light. The awful high-frequency waves that had been driving her insane were gone- and so, she realized, was G-Prime. With a start, she sat up, the sudden movement causing a sharp pain to shoot through her aching head. With a groan, she stood up and walked slowly toward where Matrix lay motionless on the ground several yards away. Reaching him, she collapsed at his side, the pain in her ankle and all through her making it impossible to go farther. "Matrix... Matrix!" she whispered insistently, shaking the renegade with both hands. The bulky sprite's eyes blinked open slowly, rubbing his temples as he came to. "What happened?" he groaned, slowly sitting up. "Don't you remember, Sugah?" Mouse asked, looking up at him. "That thing almost had us there, and then the game cube saved our ASCII's." "Yeah..." Matrix mumbled, standing slowly and reaching for Gun, "I DO remember." 

Not twenty yards distant, the gleaming silver ovoid rested against a skyscraper in what was apparently a game based in some kind of inner city. Gun held at the ready, he advanced toward the cause of all his troubles. "Matrix, no..." Mouse said, trying faintly to stand, to stop him. "Stay right there, Mouse," Matrix said, a grin slowly spreading across his pain-wracked face. Blood poured from his nose and ears, from being so close to the ovoid in Mainframe- but he didn't seem to notice, its weapons apparently rendered powerless by game energy. "I'm going to finish this thing off, once and for all." Mouse climbed to her feet in spite of the agony that wracked her body with every step she took, fighting off the pain as she sought to approach the renegade. "But you don't know what might happen if you-" Matrix cut her off, waving Gun in the object's general direction. 

"Look at it, Mouse," he said, his face darkening as he recalled what it had done to him, to Mainframe. "This thing destroyed half a sector back in the system- but here, it's powerless. We can finish it off for good." With that, Matrix levelled his weapon, finger tightening on the trigger. "Matrix, NO!" Mouse shouted, running toward the renegade, trying any way she could to stop him- but it was too late. 

            Gun fired, a spear of brilliant blue energy impacting on the ovoid's silver armor. The renegade blinked, trying to clear away the afterimages. The thing had been stronger than he thought, he saw. Only one panel of its armor seemed to have been vaporized. And a dark, writhing mass of _something_ reached out of its center _toward him_. In that instant, Matrix realized the deceptively simple trap he'd fallen into. The _thing_, whatever it was, had waited for him to do exactly that- open the doors to whatever prison had held it. And now, it seemed, he would pay for the disaster he had just inadvertently caused. He tensed his legs, ready to jump back, knowing he would never make it- and a blur of sudden movement catapulted into him, pushing him back, stunned, onto the ground. 

Mouse stood before him, eyes grim and fastened on the mysterious mass, katana poised before her to strike. "Get outta here, Sugah!" she gasped, breathing hard, "I'll hold this thing off." "Mouse..." Matrix said, stunned at what had just happened. "Get out of here now!" the hacker cried, bringing her katana down in a deadly arc toward the mass below. Matrix stumbled to his feet, watching with horror as Mouse's blade struck. The teeming mass of _whatever_ it was writhed for a moment, an audible squeal reaching the renegade's ears... and then swarmed _up_ the blade, Mouse's eyes widening in shock as she saw what was about to happen. 

It took less than a nanosecond. The teeming gray mass _consumed_ Mouse's arm, and the hacker cried out in sudden pain. She slumped to the ground, motionless... and the thing slithered quickly in Matrix's direction, looking for fresh victims. The renegade jumped quickly aside, weapon held at the ready... but the thing raced by at incredible speed. Apparently, the bulky sprite hadn't been its target at all... He got shakily to his feet, confused by his apparent salvation. He ran to Mouse's side, kneeling over the hacker, hoping she wasn't...

            A sharp flash of light in the distance, where the cube's edges touched down in Mainframe made Matrix look up abruptly. The renegade gasped in horror as the ground, the _sky_ all around him began to merge in a vast expanse of writhing, featureless gray. In an instant, the inner-city world he had been in was no more.

Steve blinked blearily at the screen, the Grand Theft Auto game he'd been playing disappearing from the screen in a wash of harsh gray light. _This time I've definitely had a few too many_, he thought as images began to flash on the screen. Images that were definitely not from Grand Theft Auto. His thief character screamed horrifically as the lower half of his body simply _disappeared_, blood pumping out in surges of grisly red to stain the buildings around it... and suddenly, there were no more buildings. _That's wierd, _thought Steve._ Didn't know they had _that _programmed in_. With a groan, Steve lowered his head to the desk, his snores resonating throughout the house. 

            Matrix looked around frantically as the world he knew disappeared around him, the sky darkening to be replaced by... an arena. His eyes narrowed as a bolt of flaming red hit the ground inches from him. He knew this place! He reached desperately for Gun as Zaytan stepped menacingly forward. _What's happening to me?_ he thought as he frantically sidestepped the demon's clawed swipe. Matrix screamed in agony as he felt the monster's claw tearing into his eye... Suddenly the arena vanished before him in a wash of featureless gray, to be replaced by the laughing image of...

            "Megabyte?" the renegade whispered. He shook his head, renewed pain flaring within as he ground his teeth in frustration. Zaytan's deadly blow, the agony as he performed the finishing move... His stolen youth, the eternity spent in the games... Megabyte's laughing face as he held Matrix at arm's length, helpless. Somehow whatever it was was probing his thoughts- forcing him to relive his worst fears. Curling into a ball on the ground, eyes closed against the impossible array of nightmarish images before him, Matrix screamed. Harsh, desperate, inhuman with sheer despair and horror, it went on and on as the images continued to shift around him. Dark laughter filled his ears, the pain in his head agonizing beyond belief... then the most welcome sound he had ever heard.

            "GAME OVER," the voice intoned. The wash of purple energy disappeared into Mainframe's nighttime sky. Shaking, his body soaked with sweat, the renegade slowly uncurled from his fetal position. His eyes opening slowly, afraid of what he might find, he stood up slowly, looking around at the buildings near the skyscraper he had been leaning against. Something skittered in the shadows of the alley to his right, and Matrix's hand reached for Gun, his hackles rising at the feel of _wrongness_ in the air around him. _Something's not right here... _he thought, looking at his surroundings uneasily. Baudway. The financial district. But the monorail had ceased to move for once... and he'd never remembered this part of the city as looking so _run down_...

He peered around the corner cautiously, holding Gun ready at his side. Dot's Diner stood before him... or rather, the place where Dot's Diner used to be. That area of the district looked as if it had been bombed mercilessly, still-smoldering wreckage scattered about the area. Nothing recognizable existed of the place Matrix had spent so much of his life, enjoyed some of his happiest times... the renegade swallowed, a tear trickling slowly down his dirt and blood-encrusted face. "Dot!" he called in a broken voice, his voice echoing in the eerie stillness of the dead city. "Cecil! Bob!" He prayed for someone, anyone to answer his calls... but only echoes of his own distraught voice answered him, silence reigning over the district. He stepped out into the open space where Dot's Diner used to be... and then he knew.

            The rest of the city lay spread out before him, the remnants of once-proud Mainframe bared for all to see. The shards of remaining buildings jutted into the air like blackened, broken fingers, as if struggling to regain the greatness they had once known. Broken, shattered, debris filled the empty streets. No one appeared to deny the holocaust Matrix saw before him- to comfort him, to tell him it was all right like AndrAIa once had. _AndrAIa..._ he thought, sobs wracking his chest as he thought of the beautiful sprite he had loved so deeply. _What happened here? Where are you now..._ Matrix's thoughts wandered as he gazed across the apocalypse that had once been Mainframe. His eyes fixed on a building in the distance, parts of it consumed in a terrible, raging inferno that lit up the desolate expanse of the city. _The Principle Office. _ His shoulders shaking, he made his way down the empty street before him, knowing in his heart that he had caused all this... that whatever had come out of that hardware had destroyed forever the world he had once known. _What have I done?_ he thought, coming to a stop before a pile of rubble, blood staining the broken concrete before him. _Oh, User... what have I done?_

******

            He made his way down the cracked, broken expanse of what had once been the main street of Mainframe, stooping to enter the jagged hole at the base of the Principle Office. The heavy steel door lay to one side, torn asunder by force. Deep gouges marred its once-sleek surface, scorched and pockmarked now by weapons fire. Matrix took a long look, drawing Gun as an uneasy shudder ran down his spine, his sweat turning cold as he stared in disbelief. The deep gouges near the door's center looked an awful lot like claw marks...

            The first thing that hit him as he stepped into the Principle Office was the atmosphere. The air felt hot and sticky on the renegade's back, and smelled strongly of sulfur. A shiver ran down Matrix's spine as he stepped alone through a low doorway. The lights were on, but a thin haze of smoke and mist floated in the air- much like the atmosphere after a battle. Matrix swallowed hard, a lump forming in his throat. He knew how this battle had most likely ended... He shoved aside a pile of wreckage, entering the cavernous expanse of the War Room. The smoke and the damp, warm mist grew thicker the deeper he went into the room. Ahead he saw a flickering red hint of flame. Almost like descending into the depths of hell... 

He took a deep breath of the oppressive air and walked farther into the room- then stopped cold at what he saw. Specky leaned against a wall near the door like a broken toy soldier, head lolled to the side at an unnatural angle. A long knife was embedded deep in the binome's chest, and letters were scrawled on the wall beside him. Red letters... as if done in blood. The writing was done in an ancient language, but it didn't matter... the intent of the words was clear. The door at the other end of the War Room stood open, beckoning, flames flickering in the darkness of the hallway beyond. Rage began to build in Matrix's chest, mingled with fear... what had done this to the people and the system he had once held dear? He saw the entrance up ahead. The Grand Hall... perhaps there he would find answers. 

He pushed open the double doors, the hinges groaning as he made his way inside. He coughed, smoke and heat filling his lungs and obscuring his vision. Step by step, he made his way into the gloom, the hairs on the back of his neck rising as he looked around uneasily. Something terrible had happened here... he was sure of it. As the smoke cleared for an instant, he saw the bloody remains of a sprite on the ground near the hall's end, and gagged first in nausea at the way the body seemed to have been violently ripped apart... then in mounting horror. He rushed forward, tears streaming down his face at what he saw. "No... no..." he whispered helplessly, desperately, cradling the sprite's limp hand in his own. A trident stood embedded in the flooring near the broken body.

"AndrAIa..." he whispered, body shaking as he sobbed over the sprite he had once known... had loved more deeply than any could have imagined. _This is it then,_ he thought. He raised Gun to his own temple, closing his eyes as his finger tightened on the trigger. _It's over... it's all over..._

"But it's not over, _boy,_" a sinister, all too familiar voice sneered from behind him. A crushing force gripped the renegade around the waist, smashing him into the wall. "You see," he said, the voice hissing within inches of Matrix's face, "The nightmare is just beginning." The renegade cringed as if struck. "Megabyte..." he whispered hoarsely.

Dot stood in the War Room, staring with mounting fear at the main viewscreen. The dust had cleared from at least part of the sector now- enough so she could see the startling change that had taken place in the game cube. "The second cube in as many minutes to land in G-Prime," Phong said as if reading her thoughts. "Coincidence?" "I think not," the Command.com said, studying the viewscreen intently. "Look what's happening!" The cube had turned almost completely, uniform gray, with a few areas near the base retaining their normal color. "Mouse and Matrix may be inside, my child," Phong advised, turning toward the Command.com. "I hope not, Phong," Dot said, a tear rolling down her cheek at the thought of what might be happening to them even now. "I truly hope not." 

            "You monster!" Matrix shouted, kicking viciously backward and connecting with the virus's midriff. Megabyte staggered backward, reeling as Matrix walked forward, slamming blow after blow into the virus's face. "It may be too late for Mainframe," he gasped, throwing all his weight behind a smashing punch to the jaw, "But I will rid the Net of you for good!" "Oh, I don't think so, _boy_," Megabyte snarled, catching the renegade's hand easily in his fist. "Not so easily." Matrix raised Gun, pointing it straight at the virus's snarling face. "Prepare for deletion, Virus!" Tentacles slashed out of Megabyte's midsection, sending Gun flying off into a distant corner. "Deletion?" Megabyte's laugh was mirthless, mocking. "I think not." Matrix never saw the dark fist coming, the force of the blow pushing him up against the wall. Megabyte's hand closed tightly about his throat, claws sliding out of their sheaths as he prepared for the ultimate blow. 

            "Go ahead," Matrix gasped, fighting for air, "I have nothing to lose- nothing left to live for now." "Not quite yet," the virus said thoughtfully, slowly retracting his claws. "Your end will be much more... interesting..." He drew back, his fist smashing the renegade _through _the hard concrete wall into the space beyond. Matrix screamed in agony. The pain was like nothing he'd ever felt before, raw, terrible... He looked behind him groggily. A solid wall of energy extended from the ground up as far as he could see. Game energy...

            He looked up at the encroaching virus, who flexed his extended claws thoughtfully. "So, you've realized the truth," he said, staring balefully down at the renegade. "You're not even real," Matrix growled, rising slowly, painfully to his feet, recognition dawning at what the virus had almost tricked him into doing. "There's no way I'm going to let some game kill me off!" "That's where you're wrong, _boy_," the virus sneered. "You see, in this game I am still just as real... and I can still delete you just as thoroughly." With that, Megabyte surged forward, claws reaching in a killing swipe for the renegade's throat. Matrix barely dodged, seizing the virus's arm in mid-swing and using his own momentum to propel the virus into the wall of coruscating game energy. Ignoring Megabyte's howl of pain, Matrix reached backward for the trident... the weapon that had saved his life before against the virus and would now take care of him for good. Taking hold of his old enemy with both hands, he threw Megabyte mercilessly to the ground, standing over him with the trident poised.  Megabyte raised his arms helplessly, looking up at the renegade's grim features, searching his face for some sign of mercy. He found none. 

            "You can't... do this.." he gasped, reaching weakly for the arm holding the deadly trident. "Game over, Virus," Matrix snarled, hurling the weapon down with full force. This time, the trident's three prongs struck home. 

            "There is a buildup of energy," Phong said into the tense atmosphere of the War Room. "The game is leaving." Dot watched the screen facial muscles tensed at what she knew must be about to happen... _Not again, Enzo_, she thought, burying her face in her arms. As her shoulders shook with muffled sobs, the wash of energy descended into the heavens. "GAME OVER," the voice came. She waited expectantly for those three final, fatal words she knew were about to come... but they never came. Crying with relief, she threw her arms around Phong, hugging the old sprite to her tightly. "They're OK," she said, the words a miracle in themselves. "Somehow, some way, they did it... now we just have to get them home." 

            Phong's eyes widened- not at the way Dot was behaving, but at what was now occurring on the main screen. "Dot..." he said, not wanting to end her joy so soon, but shaking as he saw the monitors fluctuate rapidly with renewed change. "Dot... it's happening." 

            Matrix stood up, exhausted, as the game cube left. The city was still there, laid out below him in all her glory... the Principle Office still stood in the distance, tall and proud behind her still-raised shields. He'd never seen something so beautiful before in his life. A smile creased his blood-streaked face, exhausted but elated: he'd made it back. They could finally go home. His face darkened as he glanced around, specks of gray spreading out to cover buildings, streets, and anything that stood in its path. Mainframe was still here- but because of him, it might not be, for long. Because of him, it might soon be that dark apocalypse he'd envisioned in the game. And with this second chance, he could not allow that to happen as long as he could stand against it. Never again, he vowed silently as he started away from the encroaching death. 

He had to make it back to the Principle Office- had to warn everyone before the horror he'd seen happened all over again. "Mouse!" he shouted. "Come on- we're getting out of here! Mouse?" With a muffled curse, he glanced over his shoulder to where the hacker's prone form lay- directly in the path of the spreading horror. He slung her over his shoulder, running for where they'd left Ship parked just outside of G-Prime. _We'll make it out of this,_ he vowed to himself _We've got to. For Bob, for Dot, for AndrAIA... and for Mainframe_._ Because there is no one else._

            "What is it?" Dot cried, turning her tear-streaked face to look back at the main viewscreen. "We are reading an energy pulse in G-Prime!" Phong shouted, pointing at one of the monitors. "It's trying to map the system!" "What happens if it does that?" Dot asked uncertainly. Fear was mirrored in the old sprite's eyes. "Mainframe is finished," he whispered. "Is there any way we can stop this thing?" she asked, voice shaking slightly. "Our defenses were not calculated with this sort of attack in mind," Phong said, eyes downcast. "In short- no. I am sorry, my child." 

Dot's head came up, tears stopped for the moment and eyes filled with a new sense of purpose. "Well I for one am not ready to go down without a fight," she said, surveying the assembled War Room staff. "I know of one thing that just might work. Specky?" "Yes _sir_, ma'am," the binome said, fingers flying over his console. "Tell Hugh and his boys to ready the senders." "What are you going to do?" Phong asked, the old sprite's eyes wide. "The only thing we can do, Phong... the only thing that stands any chance of working." "And that is?" he asked doubtfully. "We're going to reactivate the firewall."

            Matrix pushed onward, the burden on his shoulders slowing him down as he ran desperately from the closing gray mass. He knew he could make it if it weren't for Mouse... but he would never leave his friends behind. Never again. Arms and legs burning with fatigue, he struggled onward, hoping that some way, somehow they'd still make it back. 

            "You can't be serious!" Phong exclaimed. "You don't know how many were left by the reboot... and how many were shorted out by Hexadecimal's attack!" "The field will be weakened," Dot admitted, "But it's our only defense at the moment. Hugh and his boys can reroute the current through the undamaged senders... I just hope they can work fast enough." She palmed open another vidwindow, this time to the one sprite she loved and trusted most in the world. "Bob," she said, her voice hesitant. "I know what I said before... but we need someone out there to activate the firewall, and you're the only one who can do it. I-" Bob held up a hand, zip board already maximized. "I understand," he said, a small smile lighting his face. "We'll be there." And the vidwindow closed. She could only hope they'd all make it through this day...

            Hugh appeared on the main viewscreen. "The senders are ready," he said simply. "Everything is in place. Awaiting your command." The words caught before she could say them. On the main viewscreen, she saw Matrix racing for the border, carrying Mouse... but the darkness was outracing them to the left, cutting ahead of them mercilessly. At this rate, she knew, it would reach the border before they would. "Dot?" Phong asked tensely, waiting for her to give the order. "I can't," she said at last. "We can't leave Matrix stranded back there!" Phong's face tightened again with the same gut-level fear. "Dot," he said, "Do you know what that thing _is_? It will destroy all of Mainframe if you don't give the order now!" Bob hovered into position, looking through the vidwindow at the War Room. All eyes were on her. She sighed, a tear trickling slowly down her cheek. "Bob..." she said, still almost unable to say the words. "Activate the firewall... now." Dot slumped to the floor, knowing that because of that sing, simple, fatal command, she was about to lose her own brother... and her best friend, someone she'd never even gotten a chance to apologize to.

Bob's eyes closed, concentrating, focusing every last bit of power he had into one final command. He was still weak after Daemon's defeat, though he hadn't let any of the others, even Dot, see just how much... He needed all of his energy if he was going to make this work. _Glitch..._ he thought inwardly, remembering a lifetime ago when they'd been separated... when voice commands had been necessary. Now he was one with the keytool... and one thought would complete the command. _Firewall._

Hope shining in his eyes, Matrix ran as fast as his tiring muscles could take him toward the border of G-Prime... where Ship could finally fly them to safety. The gray mass had gained on them to the left, but they were almost there- they could still make it! _Just a few more steps..._

            Then, straight ahead, he saw Bob- hands spread out before him, energy focused straight into the ground. Suddenly, he knew what was about to happen- knew there was no way he could stop it. "Bob, no!" he shouted. The Guardian's eyes lifted, taking in the renegade with horrified shock... but it was far too late. A wall of red sprang up, cutting off Matrix's last vision of freedom... and trapping him behind the firewall he had helped to create. "ANDRAIA!" he shouted, staring in mounting terror as the blazing wall rose up and the seething gray mass closed in...

A/N: There. A fine last chapter, for awhile. Let me know what you think of it. And no, I have not "killed everyone off"- reread the prologue (set in the future) if you want proof of that. Please, please review... I've stayed up all night and written everything to the best of my ability into this chapter. This is the best I could do... so be good enough to tell me what you think of it. Until next time, Tom


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